There has been a significant increase in the number of consumers that use digital video recorders (DVRs) such as TiVo™. These devices allow consumers to record their favorite shows and in the meantime skip any commercials appearing within the shows.
However, this unexpectedly brings on a problem, i.e. the shrinking viewership of traditional advertisements, which is adverse for advertisers. In order to overcome this effect, the advertisers are resorting to various new ways to promote their products.
Among them, the in-show product placements method is catching much attention. Just one example of this was the “Austin Powers” movies where placements for beer were sold to the beer companies. But this method does not provide information to a viewer on where to buy products from. Furthermore, it does not provide the viewer a quick and easy way to buy the products.
Hence, there is a need to develop a system which enables the advertisers to effectively promote their products as well as enables the customers to conveniently and directly buy the desired products.